Amputee
aims high with marathon run as goal

He’s not bombastic, and he does not promise things he cannot
deliver. Tartaglio, 22, doesn’t need a gimmick to get across
his point: There is no obstacle in life that can’t be overcome.

All he has to do is roll his wheelchair onto the stage and start talking
about what happened to him.

He was a normal 17-year-old Joseph A. Foran High School junior in summer
2004 when he inexplicably contracted a disease so rare it’s only
been documented 35 times. It caused him to lose both legs and his left
bicep.

After months of grueling rehabilitation, Tartaglio returned to school,
and his story went national as Oprah Winfrey arranged for Derek Jeter
to surprise Tartaglio at Foran, and he was flown in Donald Trump’s
helicopter to meet the Yankees in New York. Tartaglio and his family
were featured on Oprah’s show.

Now, after graduating from Fairfield University this summer with a
pre-med degree, Tartaglio is a motivational speaker. Last week, Tartaglio
spoke to about 75 students and faculty at Housatonic Community College
in Bridgeport. At the end of his hour-long presentation, he received
a thunderous standing ovation.

“Here’s a man who cannot spell the word surrender, and John is
my new personal hero,” said Kirk Wesley, a Housatonic student who helped
arrange Tartaglio’s visit.

Afterward, Tartaglio received the rock star treatment as a line of
students formed seeking to share a word of encouragement, shake his
hand, or in one case, plant a kiss on the cheek.

He said his son is committed to helping others in need. “His
attitude is, don’t feel sorry for me because I have better things
ahead,” Tartaglio Sr. said. “Every person I speak to, they
tell me this kid has a heart of stone. Nothing gets him depressed.
He never gets down.”

Tartaglio said he never got too down because he was too focused on
living his life.

“You can’t do anything about it so shut up and go do it,” Tartaglio
said.

The Story begins

Tartaglio said there was nothing special about his story until summer
2004.

“I was perfectly healthy, playing sports, football and baseball,” Tartaglio
said.

On Aug. 22, 2004, Tartaglio awoke with unbearable pain in his legs.
He recalled trying to make the 15-foot trip to the bathroom, but it
was too painful, and he was taken to the hospital.

At the hospital, his left arm began to turn purple. He recalled waking
up the next day and seeing his family by his bedside, crying.

“I felt ‘I’m going to die today,’” Tartaglio
recalled thinking. Doctors told him he was suffering from a rare bacterial
infection and his chance of survival was 25 percent. It has never been determined
how he caught the infection.

He was taken to another hospital by helicopter, and when he awoke,
his legs and left bicep were gone.

“I woke up and I was like, how am I going to be able to live like any
other high school kid?” Tartaglio said. “I knew I needed to be
strong for my family.”

The doctor told him he’d never walk again.

“I didn’t want to hear that,” a smiling Tartaglio said. “I
set a goal of getting my high school diploma on time and walking at graduation.”

Tartaglio was in the hospital for six weeks before being moved to a
rehabilitation center. He said he drew strength from friends and family
who never left his bedside.

“There was not one day where I was by myself,” Tartaglio said.

Rehabilitation was difficult. He had to relearn how to dress himself.
He recalls laying on a mat on the floor and countless futile attempts
to get up.

“I remember going back to my room really angry,” Tartaglio said.

In a week, Tartaglio was able to get up, which he calls his biggest
accomplishment since surviving. He began to lift weights, with an eye
on eventually walking.

He soon received specially designed prosthetics. Tartaglio was able
to walk back and forth between parallel bars. He then attempted to
walk with crutches while using his prosthetics. He recalls walking
just 1,500 feet and being completely sapped of energy.

“It was like being on a pair of stilts,” Tartaglio said. “It
was very scary.”

Back then, a 5 kilometer run and walk was being scheduled in Milford
to help Tartaglio pay medical bills. Despite his struggles walking,
Tartaglio vowed to walk a lap at the race, which he did. It took him
45 minutes to walk 0.25 mile, but he recalled being “ecstatic.”

“I was told I’d never walk again, and I had just done a quarter
of a mile,” Tartaglio said.

His trainer, James Ronia, of Milford Rehabilitation Associates, challenged
him to walk the entire race next year. Tartaglio also achieved his
goal of walking to receive his diploma.

Tartaglio’s former principal at Foran High, Michael Cummings,
said Tartaglio always impressed him long before his illness.

“What impressed me the most was the way the building rallied around him,
and that he always maintained a maturity that would be the envy of anyone,” Cummings
said. “He had a natural magnetism that drew staff to his cause. It was,
with all sincerity, a privilege to know him and to draw strength from him.”

After graduation

Tartaglio said his story really begins after graduation. He enrolled
at Fairfield University in the pre-med program. He competed in a 5k
race on Long Island with his prosthetics, and was the first amputee
without femurs and thighbones to finish.

He recalled it was summer 2006, and he called a bike shop asking about
a hand cycle, and the owner challenged him to compete in the New York
marathon.

“I said ‘all right,’” Tartaglio said.

With limited training time, he finished the marathon in 30th place
with his hand cycle.

“The crowd on the side was cheering. There was no experience like it,” Tartaglio
said.

In 2007, he competed in a New York City triathlon, then a 10k race
in 2008 on his prosthetics. His senior year, Tartaglio wanted to complete
a half Iron Man competition. He recalls that he was on his hand cycle
going about 32 miles per hour when he hit a pothole and took a serious
spill.

“The medic came over and (said) I could finish next year, and I said ‘Oh
no, I didn’t come this far for nothing,’” said Tartaglio,
who finished the race with bandages on his chest and shoulder.

Tartaglio has been training the past five months for the New York City
marathon. He’s been working with new prosthetics and increasing
his distance each time. Tartaglio has run up to nine hours at one time,
while lifting weights for another hour. He is able to run a mile in
about 25 minutes. He said he expects to be out there “all day” today,
but he said he doesn’t allow himself to think about not finishing.

Housatonic students wished Tartaglio success Sunday. Wesley, who is
president of the college’s student government, said he read about
Tartaglio’s story, and after forming the school’s Community
Action Network, felt there would be no better person to inspire students.

Kenny Gracia, 24, of Bridgeport, said Tartaglio’s message was
important for students to hear. He said sometimes people face challenges,
and Tartaglio has shown that “you can’t let that keep you
down.”

“Everything is possible, don’t lose faith,” Gracia said of
Tartaglio’s message. “John running in the New York City marathon
shows a lot of heart.”

Kimberly Nania, 18, of Stratford, said Tartaglio’s talk was amazing
in that he “doesn’t feel sorry for himself.”

“He acts normal,” Nania said. “He does things that a lot
of us think are out of reach for us. He’s an inspiration. He doesn’t
make me feel bad that I haven’t done anything (like he has).”

Tartaglio Sr. said five years ago, life was a “nightmare,” but
he knows his son will “conquer and rule.”

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